Raised

Target

Dog fighting is not only a problem of cruelty to animals; dog fighting is also part of a criminal subculture that can involve other criminal activities such as illegal gambling, drug related crimes, theft as well as contributing to the destruction of communities. Illegal gambling is an inherent part of a dogfight, and because money changes hands, weapons are common on the scene.

Children are often present, and besides the inherent danger of the situation to a child, their witnessing such premeditated acts of cruelty lead to an ever growing desensitisation to violence. Dog fighting is a strong indicator of a society in decay as it promotes and encourages a culture of non-empathy.

This routine exposure of the children to both criminal activities and unfettered animal abuse and neglect can be a major contributing factor in their later manifestation of conduct disorders and social deviance.

Illegal dog-fighting is rife in all communities, with bets ranging from drugs and sexual favours to R1.5 million on a fight. For the dogs involved, there are no winners . . . only pain, fear and death- no animals deserves this.

Dogs that are born, bought or stolen for fighting purposes are often neglected and abused from the start. Most spend their entire lives alone on chains or in cages, only knowing the attention of a human when they are being trained to fight, only know the company of other animals in the context of being trained to attack and kill them.

In the fight against dog fighting our Inspectorate is currently engaging with the SAPS to bring a halt to this crime and to curb the trafficking of animals to Angola and Namibia. In the last financial year alone, we investigated almost 8 000 cases of animal cruelty, many of these involved either the suspicion of dog fighting or were in response to tip-offs of dog fights in progress.Each case from beginning investigations through to final prosecution costs the SPCA on average R25 000.

Join us as we make a difference in the lives of those forced to fight.